What is ISO 22867 - Vibration test code for portable hand-held machines about?
ISO 22867 is an international standard that covers vibration test code for portable hand-held machines, ensuring the operational stability and safety in hand-held machines.
ISO 22867 specifies a vibration test code for determining, efficiently and under standardized conditions, the magnitude of vibration at the handles of portable hand-held, internal-combustion-engine-powered forest and garden machinery, including chain-saws, brush-cutters, grass-trimmers, edgers, pole-mounted powered pruners, hedge-trimmers and garden-blowers.
In ISO 22867, although the magnitudes measured are obtained in an artificial operation, they nevertheless give an indication of the values to be found in a real work situation.
Vibration test codes, as described in ISO 22867, enable the manufacturer to verify the effort regarding low vibration design.
Who is ISO 22867 - Vibration test code for portable hand-held machines for?
ISO 22867 on vibration test code for portable hand-held machines applies to:
- Manufacturers of hand-held machines
- Dealers and importers of hand-held machines
- Testing houses and labs for hand-held machines
- Quality and safety assurance services
- Regulatory bodies
Why should you use ISO 22867 - Vibration test code for portable hand-held machines?
Portable hand-held machines have a wide variety of applications in gardening and agricultural applications. They are complex machines that ease the process of heavy mechanical tasks, therefore, ensuring safety is essential for the operators and machines.
ISO 22867 provides users guidance on vibration quantities to be measured and determined, enabling users to identify and measure the vibration risks associated with the operations of portable hand-held machines.
ISO 22867 provides users guidance on instrumentation, measurement of direction and location, test and operating conditions of the machine, measurement and calculation, information to be reported and declaration and verification of vibration values, enabling the measurement of the vibration of emission of hand-held machinery.
The guidance ISO 22867, enables users to determine the vibration characteristics, which is primarily used for:
- Manufacturer's declarations
- Comparing data between machines in the machine family concerned
- Development work at the design stage
- The estimation of the vibration risk considering the specific conditions (parameters)
With obedience and compliance to ISO 22867, users can develop vibration test code for portable hand-held machines with the internal engine, ensuring their efficiency, structural integrity and prevention of hazards in gardening and agricultural applications.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS EN ISO 22867:2021 supersedes BS EN ISO 22867:2011, which is now withdrawn.
Changes in BS EN ISO 22867:2021 include:
- Scope has been expanded to include hand-held edgers
- Clause 9 (Information to be reported) has been amended to include “method used for in situ check of the instrumentation system”
- The accelerometer position for pole-mounted powered pruners and long-reach hedge trimmers has been newly defined to better reflect handling of the machine in use
- The engine speed tolerance for the operation mode “full load” for chain-saws has been broadened from 3,5 s-1 to 4,5 s-1, to account for feasibility when cutting wood
- Hand-held edgers have been included in Annex B

